A billet composed of an electrically conductive material can be heated by electric induction. The billet is placed inside a solenoidal coil and ac current supplied to the coil establishes a magnetic field that penetrates the billet. The field induces eddy current in the billet that heats the billet. Generally there are three methods of placing a billet inside the coil. In the first method the coil is seated in a container that is placed within the coil. The container may be an open boat-shaped structure formed from a non-magnetic material such as a stainless steel. In the second method the billet is pushed into the coil by an appropriate mechanical system and seated on billet support members. In the third method the billet is externally supported while a portion (such as the center or an end) of the billet is inductively heated; this method is not applicable to billet support when the billet length is shorter than the coil. In all methods a thermal insulating material generally surrounds the billet within the coil to assist in retention of the induced heat. This thermal insulating material generally takes the form of an open cylinder formed from a suitable refractory. Known billet support systems comprise two or more water-cooled rods disposed longitudinally along the interior wall of the thermal insulating material. The rods are composed of non-magnetic material such as a stainless steel. The billet is pushed into the coil and seated on the rods. The rods are cooled by flowing a cooling medium, such as water, through passages within the rods. Cooling is required since a significant amount of heat induced in the billets can be transferred by conduction to the rods. Further the rods may be electrically conductive and experience some induced heating from the generated magnetic field. Over time the rod material wears away and portions of the internal cooling passages leak water, which can cause electrical short circuits in the induction coil. Further the necessity of making water connections to the rods inhibits repositioning of the rods to better accommodate billets of varying sizes. Therefore there is the need for a billet support system that does not require water or other internal cooling systems and can be easily adjusted to handle multiple sizes of billets.